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1 Chronicles 21
1599 Geneva Bible
1 Chronicles 21
1599 Geneva Bible
21 1 David causeth the people to be numbered, 14 and there dieth seventy thousand men of the pestilence.
1 And [a]Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel.
2 Therefore David said to Joab, and to the rulers of the people, Go, and number Israel from [b]Beersheba even to Dan, and bring it to me, that I may know the number of them.
3 And Joab answered, The Lord increased his people an hundred times so many as they be, O my lord the king: are they not all my lord’s servants? wherefore doeth my lord require this thing? why should he be a cause of [c]trespass to Israel?
4 Nevertheless, the king’s word prevailed against Joab. And Joab departed and went through all Israel, and returned to Jerusalem.
5 And Joab gave the number and sum of the people unto David: and all Israel were [d]eleven hundred thousand men that drew sword: and Judah was [e]four hundred and seventy thousand men that drew sword.
6 But the Levites and Benjamin counted he not among them: for the King’s word was abominable to Joab.
7 ¶ And God was displeased with this thing: therefore he smote Israel.
8 Then David said unto God, I have sinned greatly, because I have done this thing: but now, I beseech thee, remove the iniquity of thy servant: for I have done very foolishly.
9 And the Lord spake unto Gad David’s [f]Seer, saying,
10 Go and tell David, saying, Thus saith the Lord, I offer thee three things: choose thee one of them, that I may do it unto thee.
11 So Gad came to David, and said unto him, Thus saith the Lord, Take to thee,
12 Either three years famine, or three months to be destroyed before thine adversaries, and the sword of thine enemies [g]to take thee, or else the sword of the Lord and pestilence in the land three days, that the Angel of the Lord may destroy throughout all the coasts of Israel: now therefore advise thee, what word I shall bring again to him that sent me.
13 And David said unto Gad, I am in a wonderful strait, let me now fall into the hand of the Lord: for his mercies are exceedingly great, and let me not fall into the hand of man.
14 So the Lord sent a pestilence in Israel, and there fell of Israel seventy thousand men.
15 ¶ And God sent the Angel into Jerusalem to destroy it. And [h]as he was destroying, the Lord beheld, and [i]repented of the evil, and said to the Angel that destroyed, It is now enough, let thine hand cease. Then the Angel of the Lord stood by the threshing floor of [j]Ornan the Jebusite.
16 And David lifted up his eyes, and saw the Angel of the Lord stand between the earth and the heaven, with his sword drawn in his hand and stretched out toward Jerusalem. Then David and the Elders of Israel which were clothed in sack, fell upon their faces.
17 And David said unto God, Is it not I that commanded to number the people? It is even I that have sinned and have committed evil, but these sheep, what have they done? O Lord my God, I beseech thee, let thine hand be on me and on my father’s house, and not on [k]thy people for their destruction.
18 ¶ Then the Angel of the Lord commanded Gad to say to David, that David should go up, and set up an altar unto the Lord in the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.
19 So David went up according to the saying of Gad, which he had spoken in the Name of the Lord.
20 And Ornan turned about and saw the Angel, and his four sons that were with him, [l]hid themselves, and Ornan threshed wheat.
21 And as David came to Ornan, Ornan looked and saw David, and went out of the threshing floor, and bowed himself to David with his face to the ground.
22 And David said to Ornan, Give me the place of thy threshing floor, that I may build an [m]altar therein unto the Lord: give it me for sufficient money, that the plague may be stayed from the people.
23 Then Ornan said unto David, Take it to thee, and let my lord the king do that which seemeth him good: lo, I give thee bullocks for burnt offerings, and threshing instruments for wood, and wheat for meat offering, I give it all.
24 And King David said to Ornan, Not so: but I will buy it for sufficient [n]money: for I will not take that which is thine for the Lord, nor offer burnt offerings without cost.
25 So David gave to Ornan for that place [o]six hundred shekels of gold by weight.
26 And David built there an altar unto the Lord, and offered burnt offerings, and peace offerings, and called upon the Lord, and he [p]answered him by fire from heaven upon the altar of burnt offering.
27 And when the Lord had spoken to the Angel, he put up his sword again into his sheath.
28 At that time when David saw that the Lord had heard him in the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite, then he sacrificed there.
29 (But the Tabernacle of the Lord which Moses had made in the wilderness, and the altar of burnt offering were at that season in the high place at Gibeon.
30 And David could not go before it to ask counsel at God: for he was afraid of the sword of the Angel of the Lord.)
Footnotes
- 1 Chronicles 21:1 He tempted David, in setting before his eyes his excellency and glory, his power and victories, read 2 Sam. 24:1.
- 1 Chronicles 21:2 That is, from South to North.
- 1 Chronicles 21:3 It was a thing indifferent and usual to number the people, but because he did it of an ambitious mind, as though his strength stood in his people, God punished him.
- 1 Chronicles 21:5 Joab partly for grief, and partly through negligence, gathered not the whole sum as it is here declared.
- 1 Chronicles 21:5 In Samuel is mention of thirty thousand more, which was either by joining to them some of the Benjamites which were mixed with Judah, or as the Hebrews write, here the chief and princes are left out.
- 1 Chronicles 21:9 Or, Prophet.
- 1 Chronicles 21:12 Or, smite thee.
- 1 Chronicles 21:15 Read 2 Sam. 24:16.
- 1 Chronicles 21:15 When God draweth back his plagues, he seemeth to repent, read Gen. 6:6.
- 1 Chronicles 21:15 Or, Araunah.
- 1 Chronicles 21:17 Thus he both showeth a true repentance and a fatherly care toward his people, which desireth God to spare them, and to punish him and his.
- 1 Chronicles 21:20 If man hide himself at the sight of an Angel which is a creature, how much as a sinner able to appear before the face of God?
- 1 Chronicles 21:22 Thus he did by the commandment of God, as verse 18, for else it had been abominable, except he had either God’s word, or revelation.
- 1 Chronicles 21:24 That is, as much as it is worth: for having enough of his own, and yet to have taken of another man’s goods to offer unto the Lord, it had been theft and not acceptable to God.
- 1 Chronicles 21:25 Read 2 Sam. 24:24.
- 1 Chronicles 21:26 God declared that he heard his request, in that he sent down fire from heaven, for else they might use no fire in sacrifice, but of that which was reserved still upon the altar, Lev. 6:13, and came down from heaven, Lev. 9:24, as appeared by the punishment of Nadab and Abihu, Lev. 10:1.
1 Chronicles 21
New International Version
1 Chronicles 21
New International Version
David Counts the Fighting Men(A)
21 Satan(B) rose up against Israel and incited David to take a census(C) of Israel. 2 So David said to Joab and the commanders of the troops, “Go and count(D) the Israelites from Beersheba to Dan. Then report back to me so that I may know how many there are.”
3 But Joab replied, “May the Lord multiply his troops a hundred times over.(E) My lord the king, are they not all my lord’s subjects? Why does my lord want to do this? Why should he bring guilt on Israel?”
4 The king’s word, however, overruled Joab; so Joab left and went throughout Israel and then came back to Jerusalem. 5 Joab reported the number of the fighting men to David: In all Israel(F) there were one million one hundred thousand men who could handle a sword, including four hundred and seventy thousand in Judah.
6 But Joab did not include Levi and Benjamin in the numbering, because the king’s command was repulsive to him. 7 This command was also evil in the sight of God; so he punished Israel.
8 Then David said to God, “I have sinned greatly by doing this. Now, I beg you, take away the guilt of your servant. I have done a very foolish thing.”
9 The Lord said to Gad,(G) David’s seer,(H) 10 “Go and tell David, ‘This is what the Lord says: I am giving you three options. Choose one of them for me to carry out against you.’”
11 So Gad went to David and said to him, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Take your choice: 12 three years of famine,(I) three months of being swept away[a] before your enemies, with their swords overtaking you, or three days of the sword(J) of the Lord(K)—days of plague in the land, with the angel of the Lord ravaging every part of Israel.’ Now then, decide how I should answer the one who sent me.”
13 David said to Gad, “I am in deep distress. Let me fall into the hands of the Lord, for his mercy(L) is very great; but do not let me fall into human hands.”
14 So the Lord sent a plague on Israel, and seventy thousand men of Israel fell dead.(M) 15 And God sent an angel(N) to destroy Jerusalem.(O) But as the angel was doing so, the Lord saw it and relented(P) concerning the disaster and said to the angel who was destroying(Q) the people, “Enough! Withdraw your hand.” The angel of the Lord was then standing at the threshing floor of Araunah[b] the Jebusite.
16 David looked up and saw the angel of the Lord standing between heaven and earth, with a drawn sword in his hand extended over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders, clothed in sackcloth, fell facedown.(R)
17 David said to God, “Was it not I who ordered the fighting men to be counted? I, the shepherd,[c] have sinned and done wrong. These are but sheep.(S) What have they done? Lord my God, let your hand fall on me and my family,(T) but do not let this plague remain on your people.”
David Builds an Altar
18 Then the angel of the Lord ordered Gad to tell David to go up and build an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor(U) of Araunah the Jebusite. 19 So David went up in obedience to the word that Gad had spoken in the name of the Lord.
20 While Araunah was threshing wheat,(V) he turned and saw the angel; his four sons who were with him hid themselves. 21 Then David approached, and when Araunah looked and saw him, he left the threshing floor and bowed down before David with his face to the ground.
22 David said to him, “Let me have the site of your threshing floor so I can build an altar to the Lord, that the plague on the people may be stopped. Sell it to me at the full price.”
23 Araunah said to David, “Take it! Let my lord the king do whatever pleases him. Look, I will give the oxen for the burnt offerings, the threshing sledges for the wood, and the wheat for the grain offering. I will give all this.”
24 But King David replied to Araunah, “No, I insist on paying the full price. I will not take for the Lord what is yours, or sacrifice a burnt offering that costs me nothing.”
25 So David paid Araunah six hundred shekels[d] of gold for the site. 26 David built an altar to the Lord there and sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings. He called on the Lord, and the Lord answered him with fire(W) from heaven on the altar of burnt offering.
27 Then the Lord spoke to the angel, and he put his sword back into its sheath. 28 At that time, when David saw that the Lord had answered him on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite, he offered sacrifices there. 29 The tabernacle of the Lord, which Moses had made in the wilderness, and the altar of burnt offering were at that time on the high place at Gibeon.(X) 30 But David could not go before it to inquire of God, because he was afraid of the sword of the angel of the Lord.
Footnotes
- 1 Chronicles 21:12 Hebrew; Septuagint and Vulgate (see also 2 Samuel 24:13) of fleeing
- 1 Chronicles 21:15 Hebrew Ornan, a variant of Araunah; also in verses 18-28
- 1 Chronicles 21:17 Probable reading of the original Hebrew text (see 2 Samuel 24:17 and note); Masoretic Text does not have the shepherd.
- 1 Chronicles 21:25 That is, about 15 pounds or about 6.9 kilograms
1599 Geneva Bible (GNV) 
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